Glory and Gore
by coursesoftruelove
Summary: Voldemort irreparably changed the lives of many, directly or indirectly. Emily Shaklebolt is no exception. But she only realizes that she is part of the plan when it's already too late to prevent the fate of her and her best friends. Starting on her first day at Hogwarts to the typical problems of a teenager and, to her last day. Every decision has influenced the end.
1. PROLOGUE

**Glory and Gore**

00

PROLOGUE

* * *

_07.07.1976 Carew Castle, Pembrokeshire, Wales_

He had assumed that his birthday would be different. It wouldn't be at Carew Castle and his companions would not lay perfectly still around him. No wounds are to be seen and still... Still, none of them will ever be out laughing as he remembers it. None of them will talk about their experiences anymore, they will never revive the things that they have done together.

Amongst most of them, he entered the Great Hall for the first time, he had lessons with them for the first time, he even visited the first Quidditch game of 1943 with them as well. They achieved their O.W.L.'s and N.E.W.T.'s simultaneously and enrolled in the ministry's service together.

"Blood traitor," he hears one of the three, roughly outlined forms responsible for the outcome of his birthday, say, "Hardly a loss for the world, they couldn't even defend themselves properly."

The person in the black, floor-length robe and with snow-white long hair takes a few steps towards him, allowing him to see his face.

Abraxas Malfoy, he knew him from school, not because of memories similar to the ones with his friends. No, they weren't pleasant. He only recognizes him from the moments he harassed friends of his who were not of pure-blood. He didn't even spare the innocent first graders.

"No, no, no. Your wand will no longer help you," Abraxas Malfoy says in a joking tone as the man attempts to point his wand at him, "3 against 1, how quickly the cards have turned after all."

Bellatrix Lestrange, the person with black curly hair next to him grins. Her eyes light up while she says: "My dear, dear blood traitor. If it were up to me, you wouldn't be alive either."

She walks towards him with slow, firm moves. Arriving in front of him, she leans in closer, so there is barely any distance separating their faces. Her wand pushes painfully against his abdomen and her warm breath hits him straight in the face.

His features excruciate angrily as the realization strikes him.

"An ambush" he hisses out between his tightly pressed jaw, "You have lured us into an ambush, you pathetic-"

"I don't recommend finishing this sentence," Bellatrix whispers to him, "I have a very enthusiastic temper, what may happen if I cannot keep it in line?"

A false innocent smile creeps on her face and she laughs madly.

"Bella, the orders," says the third person who has amazingly many resemblances to Abraxas Malfoy. Younger, but otherwise like father and son. Lucius Malfoy.

"I know, I know, can't one ever have fun?" she asks and turns around smiling insanely.

"You just had your fun," Abraxas Malfoy says with a sick look at the four corpses around them. "And after the fun, the duty follows."

Bellatrix takes a step back and Abraxas stands right in front of him.

"We see no reason to keep you alive, blood traitor," he spits in his face, "but the Dark Lord sees a purpose in you. It really took a long time to track you down... Some of your friends," he motions to the corpses around them, "unfortunately had to be killed on the journey."

"I am no servant of your lord, I am a servant of the ministry," he finally responds after a short break.

Bellatrix seethes, "Didn't you just listen to me?" She turns her hair around her fingers.

"What did I say about my temper again?" Her face is again only a few inches away from him and he can literally see the madness in her eyes. "One single thing bothers me the most... That is disrespect to the Dark Lord who will revolutionize, reshape, improve our world" the last word is of sheer conviction.

The man in front of her pulls a small grimace of disgust.

"I think we should kill you," she takes a few steps back and points her wand swiftly straight towards his heart, he instinctively raises his wand too. He won't go down without a fight, he has a family after all. And he wants to come back to them. Abraxas and his son Lucius immediately take a defensive stance as well.

„Bellatrix," Abraxas says in a stern voice, Bellatrix turns to him. "We leave now, the Dark Lord will take care of him on his own. Here, it is not in our power to decide over his life. Or do you want the Dark Lord to rethink yours again?"

Bellatrix turns back to the man and looks at him with such a hateful look that he nearly feels as if she is disobeying the order but her fierce loyalty to the Dark Lord, apparently, wins. And then, in only a fraction of a second, they all disappear into dark smoke.


	2. since 382 BC

**Glory and Gore**

01

"since 382 BC"

* * *

The little girl sits impatiently in front of her bedroom window, her gaze fixed on the rising sun.

Today is the day, she thinks. She knows that the letter will be coming soon, she also knows which books to buy and she knows the exact wording. But so far she has only read her brother's letter. The black-haired girl is looking forward to finally reading 'Dear Ms Shaklebolt' instead of 'Dear Mr Shaklebolt'.

It is her eleventh birthday. Today her Hogwarts letter should arrive and her parents promised her to go shopping in Diagon Alley.

She was already there several times to buy new robes with her mother at _Madam Malkin's_ or to get money with her father from the family dungeon in _Gringotts_ or even when her brother got his wand from _Ollivanders_, on his eleventh birthday. But today will be the first time she will go to Diagon Alley to buy her stuff for Hogwarts.

Finally, she gets an owl, the books, her uniforms, if she's lucky she might even convince her father to buy her a broom, even though she won't be able to join the Quidditch team as a first year anyway.

But most of all she is happy to finally get her wand. Will it have a unicorn hair core like her mother's and her father's, or will it be like her brother's phoenix feather core? Pear, alder or black walnut?

"Emily?" Her room door is opened. "Happy birthday, Emily."

Emily turns to her mother on the wide windowsill. Mirella Shaklebolt's light brown long hair falls down her back uncombed and she's still wearing her dark red sleeping dress.

"Thank you, Mom," Emily says and her mother opens her arms for a hug.

"And already you are 11 years old, how quickly time passes." Her mother presses a kiss on Emily's dark brown, almost black hair.

"Don't worry Mom, I'll always be your little witch," she looks up at her mother, who smiles lovingly down at her.

"I have a present for you." She pulls her out of her room, down the wide stone stairs with the red carpet and down a long hallway. The whole hallway is filled with pictures of her ancestors, of her father, but also of a few of her mother. Occasionally the moving pictures congratulate her and Emily thanks them politely every time.

Arriving in the cosy fireplace room of the estate, her mother turns to a large bookshelf. She taps on different books in seemingly random order with her wand and mumbles a few words in the process. Emily watches her curiously. She already has read about such spells in the old schoolbooks of her parents or her brother but she has never seen how one is performed.

Suddenly her mother stops, walks a few steps back, while a small opening opens in the middle of the wooden shelf. Her mother reaches in once and takes a box about the size of her hand out of the opening.

Emily carefully moves a few steps closer, next to her mother, and looks astonished at the small box.

"Don't tell your father that you know where I got it from," her mother whispered to her with a playful grin, "He knew you'd get it, but it's not the only thing we keep here either."

Emily's eyes get bigger and she looks amazed at the box. It is completely made of gold, with several red gems and small ornaments.

"This is our little secret now." Her mother smiles and pecks her slightly in the side, Emily laughs instinctively.

"What's more inside?" She asks curiously and tries to peek into the opening of the bookshelf.

"That," her mother pulls her back again, "is a story for another day."

"I think you should know where this gift comes from," her mother points to the little box, "My great-grandfather, your great-great-grandfather Kaspar Fawley was an exceptional magician, his talent has greatly contributed to the magical world. He developed many healing spells that I use every day at work. He dedicated his whole life to saving people, whether wizards or Muggles. Shortly before his death, he gave his wife Laurence a ring, this one." Mirella opens the box.

Carefully she lifts out a long golden chain with a ring hanging at the end. Emily watches it with giant eyes.

"It's beautiful," she says moved.

And it is exactly that. Beautiful. The band is made of solid gold with an inscription, unreadable from the distance for Emily. But what's most impressive is the gemstone, a small ruby that looks unbelievably valuable. The candlelight in the fireplace room is reflected in the stone but it looks as if it radiates light.

Emily moves her hand in the direction of the chain that has caught her. "Laurence died just after my eleventh birthday just a few weeks after Kaspar. But she gave me this chain before, on my eleventh birthday. And like me and you, your eldest daughter will get this necklace on her birthday. And her daughter and your daughter's daughter afterwards. That was the wish of your great-great-grandfather," Her mother says and carefully wraps the chain around her neck.

"Take care of it."

"I will. Always," Emily replies and lets the chain disappear under her dark blue nightgown.

A light knock interrupts her. A snow-white, big owl sits on the windowsill of the fireplace room and looks at her with huge eyes. In her beak, she holds a letter. Excited, Emily runs to the window, tears it open and lets the owl jump onto her arm.

"Go into the dining room and give her something to eat. It must have been a long way for her," her mother says, "I'll let Minky know that we'd like to have breakfast and I' ll go get father and your siblings."

"Mom?" As her mother is about to leave the room, Emily asks, "Where is Hogwarts anyway?"

"In the North of Scotland."

"Then I give her a lot to eat."

* * *

"Congratulations, my little one. Is your letter finally here?" Her father asks her as he enters the dining room and goes through her hair.

Her father is a tall man, with dark, loving eyes and many laugh lines. His shoulder-length black hair is, as always, tied back in a low ponytail.

"Yes, it was about time!" Emily laughs and gives the owl another biscuit.

"Haven't you opened it yet?"

"No, I wanted to wait for the others, Leandra surely wants to witness that," Emily says about her sister and at that very moment she runs into the room.

"Emily, your letter is here! Open it! Open it!" Leandra jumps impatiently in front of Emily.

"Congratulate her for her birthday." Her brother Kingsley, followed by her mother and house elf Minky, enters the room. "Congratulations, small witch."

Minky magically brings a full breakfast to the table with a single snap. "Does the Mistress still need anything?"

"No, thank you, Minky." The elf bows to Emily's mother and then disappears with another snap.

"Congratulations, Emily," Leandra says slightly annoyed, "But how did you manage not to open it? Come on, I want to see it too."

Emily pulls the letter from the wooden table while Kingsley opens the window to let the white owl fly out of the room, back to Hogwarts.

Leandra curiously leans over her sister's shoulder. With big eyes, she watches her open the letter. It is obvious that Leandra, just like Emily before her, is extremely excited to receive her own Hogwarts letter in four years.

* * *

**HOGWARTS SCHOOL FOR WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY**

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore

(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)

Dear Ms Shaklebolt,

We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.

Yours sincerely,

_Minerva McGonagall_

Deputy Headmistress

* * *

Leandra immediately grabs the first page of the letter as Emily puts it on the table and turns her attention to the list of things she has to buy today at Diagon Alley.

* * *

**HOGWARTS SCHOOL FOR WITCHCRAFT AND SORCERY**

**Uniform**

First-year students will require:

\- Three sets of plain work robes (black).

\- One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear.

\- One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar).

\- One winter cape (black, with silver fastenings)

_Please note that all pupil's clothing should carry name tags._

**Textbooks**

All students should have a copy of each of the following:

\- The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by _Miranda Goshawk_

\- A History of Magic by _Bathilda Bagshot_

\- Magical Theory by _Adalbert Waffling_

\- A Beginner's Guide to Transformation by _Emeric Ewitch_

\- One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by _Phyllida Spore_

\- Magical Drafts and Potions by _Arsenius Jigger_

\- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by _Newt Scamander_

\- The Dark Forces. A Guide to Self-Protection by _Quentin Tremble_

**Other equipment:**

\- 1 wand.

\- 1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2).

\- 1 set of glass or crystal phials.

\- 1 telescope.

\- 1 set brass scales.

_Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad._

**THE PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICK**

* * *

"Looks like we have to go to Diagon Alley today, I think you need some supplies," her father says with a big smile.

"We can go right after breakfast, Kingsley, did you get your list already?"

"Just arrived."

There are several ways into Diagon Alley. Via the Muggle Way, by going through a pub called Leaky Cauldron, which is only accessible to magicians, or via flea powder. But Emily and her family always take a different path.

They apparate directly into the backyard of the Leaky Cauldron, so all they have to do is tap the special sequence of bricks to move the wall into a broad gate.

It's not the first time Emily's been in Diagon Alley, but the first time she's so excited. It's the most interesting day of her life so far. Getting one' s wand is not a small event, it will hopefully accompany her all her life. She has read several books about different wands and cores.

It is supposed to say a lot about a magician what kind of wand he has.

If Emily was the one to choose, they would go straight to Ollivanders and buy it, but their father and mother said that they will do this purchase at the very end. The best would come in the end.

Her father will buy with Kingsley his school supplies and also get Leandra some small things. Otherwise, she will surely become jealous if everyone gets something except her. Leandra is a little bit selfish indeed, but a ray of sunshine at least.

Meanwhile, Emily and her mother will do the shopping for her and buy some more things Mirella will need for her study or something else.

"Make sure you tell me what it was like to get the wand!" Leandra tells her before Kingsley impatiently drags her after her father.

"Show me your list," her mother says and Emily hands it to her.

"What should we get first? Best is your uniforms, Madam Malkin's is right here at the beginning," she suggests and navigates her through the unbelievable crowd.

Emily and her family aren't the only ones who are going to buy their school supplies today as the whole alley is pretty crowded. Owls scream, little children stick to the window of a Quidditch shop, where apparently the newest broom is on display, and Emily almost stumbles over a free-running cat.

Suddenly a lost snitch hisses along her right ear, followed by a blonde-haired girl. Too late she sees Emily standing exactly in her way and in a fraction of a second she runs right against her. Both stumble briefly and Emily instinctively holds the girl by her elbow to stabilize her.

"Merlin, excuse me," she says after regaining a secure footing. "Is everything all right? Did I hurt you?"

"No, nothing happened. An exciting beginning to the day." Emily laughs briefly and the girl beams at her with a broad grin.

"This stupid snitch, with a broom I would have gotten it immediately."

"Are you in the Quidditch team?" Emily asks surprised, the girl doesn't look any older than she does.

"No, but soon. I'll be the first first-year in several years in the Quidditch team of my house! You a First grader as well?"

"I'll cheer you on right away," Emily laughs, the girl seems to know what she wants, "Yes, first year, we were just about to buy my robes."

"May I come with you, my father told me to buy some while he's still at _Gringotts_." The girl nudges her slightly into the side.

Emily looks at her mother questioningly, who nods at her briefly.

"Of course."

"What's your name anyway?" She asks Emily when both were placed on opposite pedestals, with various magic tapes and scissors waving around them.

"Emily Shaklebolt, yours?"

"Rosalie Selwyn."

"Which house do you want to be in?" Emily asks her new friend, Rosalie.

"I'm so unsure. It shouldn't be Gryffindor, my father was a Slytherin, you know? I don't think that would be ideal even though I don't think the hatred between Gryffindor and Slytherin is necessary."

"But if you're a Gryffindor at heart, wouldn't that be the best decision?"

"Oh, I don't think I'm a Gryffindor on the inside. I'm not fearless or daring, and they' re also not qualities that I particularly value. But I don't think I'm Slytherin or Hufflepuff either, I'll probably take after my mom. She was in Ravenclaw." Rosalie looks a little lost in thought at Emily. Confused, she shakes her head once and turns back to Emily.

"What house do you think you'll be sorted in?"

"Certainly not Slytherin," she laughs and Rosalie joins in after a short pause. Emily doesn't hold a grudge against Slytherin in particular but she also doesn't feel as if she belongs there.

"But otherwise I don't know what it can become. My mom was in Gryffindor and even though I'd like to be like her," her eyes wander to her mother, who is looking at a new satin cape at the shop entrance, "I'm not. I would think Hufflepuff was somehow stupid, it seems so boring. Loyalty, of course, it's important, but I prefer to be intelligent like a Ravenclaw. But am I a Ravenclaw?"

"I understand what you mean. I think only the Sorting Hat knows who you are and then you can only make the best out of it."

"Well, my dear ones. Your house colours and badges will magically appear on your uniform when you are assigned. Enjoy Hogwarts!" Madam Malkin says after Emily and Rosalie have both given her two galleons and 13 sickles each.

"Do you have your wand yet?" She asks Rosalie after they've left the store and Emily's just waiting for her mother.

"Yes, just now," Rosalie pulls a light brown wand which is slightly bent in the middle and has a small ring of the same wood at the beginning, from her cape.

"Walnut and phoenix feather, 10 inches, inflexible. Ollivander said phoenix feather is the rarest core and a wand made of walnut only selects someone intelligent who will develop magical things or at least has the potential to do so. It's so exciting!" Rosalie says proudly, but Emily can understand.

She also wishes to get such an exciting wand.

"Emily, are you ready, can we move on?" Mirella Shaklebolt, who just bought three new robes and another travel cape herself, asks her.

"Rosalie, are you comin' with us any further?" Emily asks her new friend.

"No, my father's coming back there already." Rosalie points to a tall man with dark brown hair and quite a long face.

"I'll write you a letter and if not, I'll see you at the Hogwarts Express, save me a seat or I'll save you a spot, I don't know, we'll see. See you there!" she says, bids Mirella a more formal farewell and runs towards her father.

"Already found a friend?" Her mother smiles at her. "It will probably never be boring with her".

"Hogwarts can't be boring at all! But speaking of Hogwarts," Emily replies and waggles the shopping list in front of her mother's face, "I still need some more!"

"Then off to _Flourish and Blotts_, that's where we get a lot from the list."

_Flourish and Blotts_ is a shop stacked up to the ceiling with books, neither neat nor well-arranged, but a paradise for every bookworm and also a paradise for Emily.

Mirella makes sure that Emily gets all her textbooks, even if she already read her brother's old textbooks anyway. What should you do when you have about three years and want to do magic?

Emily is especially interested in transformation and charms. Like her parents, she should have a talent for magic potions, but she must honestly say that there are more interesting things for her. Maybe she just finds the depiction of magic to be too indirect. A potion can last endlessly long until it affects, a spell works immediately and that fascinates her much more than bubbling brew.

She walks past a copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard by _Beedle the Bard_, a well-known children's book. Mirella also read it for Emily when she was younger. But what Emily is interested in are books that teach her something and children's stories don't count.

Emily chooses four more books that her parents don't have in their library yet: The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 by _Miranda Goshawk_, Quintessence: A Quest, Achievements in Charming and Intermediate Transfiguration - for theoretical support in the art of Transfiguration.

She should have enough reading material for the next few weeks.

Next, they go to a shop where Emily buys her cauldron (which unfortunately has to be made of tin), a handy brass scale, a telescope, and an assortment of crystal bottles.

Immediately after that, they make their way to _Slug & Jiggers Apothecary_, where Emily gets the standard ingredients for potions and Mirella buys some more special ingredients such as Thestral Hair, Unicorn Horn and Beetle Eyes.

When Emily asks Mirella what she needs it for, Mirella only replies that she only has to stock up on her supplies because they need more and more potions at work, so healers have to brew at home.

The purchase that has cost more than 40 galleons will be refunded.

"Where are we going now? What's still missing?" Mirella asks as they stand in front of the apothecary.

"All I need is an owl, a wand and school supplies like feathers and stuff."

"Then let's go to _Scribbulus Writing Implements_, then we'll get your owl and then you'll get your wand" Mirella pulls her towards a narrow shop with a dark brown-red facade.

There Emily gets herself a grey eagle quill. For a long time, she couldn't decide whether she wanted an eagle feather or a peacock feather. Only when her mother slowly became impatient she instinctively chose the eagle feather. The quill doesn't make a difference anyway. Otherwise, she only gets normal black ink and parchment, although they buy quite a lot of both. In Hogwarts one apparently has to write rather many essays.

Next, they go to _Eeylops Owl Emporium_. Every first grader is allowed to take an animal with them and Emily has decided to have an owl. On the one hand, she can always write to her parents and friends with it, on the other hand, she is disgusted by toads, cats hair too much and a naked cat she also didn't feel like having.

The shop is dark and in some corners, you could hear a fluttering. From time to time Emily also discovered diamond bright pairs of eyes that flashed in the darkness.

They leave the shop with a small cage in which probably the smallest owl Emily has ever seen was sitting.

"He probably won't be able to cover long distances, but it should be enough to reach your home from Hogwarts," said the saleswoman.

Emily's mother had been a little suspicious about buying the owl, what good was an animal that might not be able to deliver letters, but Emily was convinced at first glance that he was the right owl.

She called him Cosmo. He has dark eyes that were far too big for the extremely small body of the dark brown screech owl, but they look like they are mirroring the night sky.

Emily knew it was the right decision when Cosmo immediately nibbled on her finger when she gave him a biscuit.

"Finally, my wand!" Emily calls out as they finally arrive in front of Ollivanders.

That's what she's been waiting for all day. The shop was narrow and shabby. Above the door, it was written in peeling gold letters: _Ollivander - Good wands since 382 B.C_.

A single wand lies on a purple cushion in the shop window. Emily goes into the shop alone, her mother said she was waiting for her father, Kingsley, and Leandra to find out where they are.

As she entered, a small bell rang and a somewhat elderly man stumbled out of the furthest corner of the long store. Garrick Ollivander, only five years ago he took over the shop from his father, but he is at least as qualified as his previous owner, Emily was told.

With Kingsley's wand, he only needed three attempts to find the perfect one.

"Emily Louise Shaklebolt," he says immediately and lets a tape measure fly around her that measures questionable distances, "right, you're starting this year too! I'm already curious which wand it will be for you! Unicorn hair just like your parents? Mirella and Cassian Shaklebolt, both lovely magicians. Or Phoenix feather and black walnut, a combination just as special as your brother's"?

"I don't think I'm as special as he is," Emily answers quietly.

"No, no. Every wizard is special, one way or another! I have never seen a wizard who couldn't do great work, it only depends on his willpower," Ollivander says to her, "But now to your wand, that's why you're here after all."

Emily's eyes light up.

"Let's try this one: Willow tree, unicorn hair, twelve inches, flexible. Especially suitable for healing activities."

Emily takes the light wand out of the box and holds it in her hand a little overwhelmed.

"Swing it, you have to swing it," Ollivander says, and when Emily does exactly that, several boxes fall out of the high shelves at the same time.

"No, no, no," Ollivander mumbles to himself, "It probably won't be that one."

"Then maybe this wand: Beechwood and dragon heartstrings. Handy and flexible. Nine inches."

Emily swings it again and instead of all sorts of shafts flying off the shelves this time, the shop window shatters. On the street, Emily can hear occasional screams and the unforgettable laughter of her brother. "Well, that's going fabulous!"

"Don't give up, Miss Shaklebolt. Every wizard has a matching wand! I think at least the dragon heartstring is right for you. But beech wood, no, that doesn't seem to be for you... Hm... I have an idea." Ollivander disappears into the back of the shop.

Emily quickly takes the opportunity to stick out her tongue to her big brother, she'll find hers, as Ollivander says!

"European Elbe. Dragon heartstring. 14 inches. Inflexible. But I can't imagine that it fits."

"Then why would I try it?" Emily asks confused and pulls her bushy eyebrows together slightly.

"If it doesn't fit at all, I know which one should fit in the end." Ollivander grins mischievously.

Emily lifts the wand, which already feels strange in her hands. It's too long, too rigid and too heavy. After a short, very hesitant swing, an entire shelf falls in the background and Emily puts the wand back into the green box as soon as possible. It probably wasn't that one either.

"Then it must be this one: Blackthorn. Dragon heartstring. 11 1/2 inch. Slightly springy flexibility".

The almost completely black wand with a few golden ornaments on the handle, which looks as if it had been turned several times in small spirals, lies in a dark box with a dark blue cushion. The moment Emily lifts it, she feels a warm feeling that floods her entire little body and after a small swing of the wand, she is surrounded by several dark blue and silver sparks. She knows straight away that this is her perfect wand.

"That's it. Perfect! We found your wand. I must say, I am a little surprised. Dragon heartstring and blackthorn. Your wand can simply be turned away into black magic, but don't be mistaken. Wizards sitting in Azkaban, as well as Aurors, have similar wands to this one. You are a fighter, you can do great things, but what will you do?" Ollivander looks at Emily slightly lost in thought.

"Well, back to the topic: That makes 7 galleons and I'm curious Miss Shaklebolt, I am sure I will hear from you!"

Emily thanks him confused and leaves the shop.

"And? and? Do you have your wand or have you been a hopeless case?" Leandra immediately bombards her with questions as she leaves the store, still slightly confused by the purchase.

"Leandra!" Mirella scolds her daughter. "Everyone finds a wand at _Ollivanders_. What kind did you get?" Mirella turns to her daughter.

Emily tells them how many wands she had to try before and which one she finally got. But she keeps Ollivander's statements to herself, what can she possibly do with them at the delicate age of eleven?

* * *

Later in the evening Emily sits alone on her big bed and reads her new copy of _Emeric Ewitch's A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_. She is trying to transform a matchstick into a needle. Kingsley said this was one of the first exercises and she wants to score right at the beginning and get points for the house cup.

There is a soft knock at her bedroom door and her father comes in with a rather long package in his hand.

"Your mother has already given you a birthday present, I see," he nods towards the chain over her red nightgown, "but unfortunately I haven't had time to give you mine yet."

Emily puts her book and the wand she's holding in her other hand from her lap onto her bed. Cassian hands her the long package and hastily she opens it.

"A broom? A broom! She calls out enthusiastically, quickly puts the parcel on the bed and embraces her father stormily. Laughing, he lifts her briefly.

"I know you're not allowed to take it with you yet, but at least you don't have to steal your brother's during the holidays anymore." Cassian sets her down again and smiles at her lovingly, so his laugh lines stick out.

"Now Hogwarts can only be brilliant, I'm so excited!" She calls out and quickly hugs her father again.

"I know, I know. The time in Hogwarts is a very memorable one. You will never forget it."

* * *

**INFORMATION**

This is a story starting with the Marauder's first year at Hogwarts. I won't go on and fully explain every year, I guess that starts when they are in their 5th year but the first chapters will definitely be about building up relationships. Also so you know where they are all coming from. Telling the separate stories of the characters I am introducing including the Marauders.

But the next few chapters will obviously not only be about that, but it's the main purpose. I will always place little hints for the main plot to make you guys think about what could be happening.

What did the Prologue mean?

What was I hinting at in the summary?

Stuff like that, hope you enjoy it!

**Next update: Tuesday. June 18.**


	3. Welcome to Hogwarts

**Glory and Gore**

02

Welcome to Hogwarts

* * *

It's the 1st of September 1971. Her entire childhood Emily has awaited this day excitedly, but now that it's here, she suddenly feels anxious.

Is she properly prepared? Will she fit into her house, will the Sorting Hat not make a mistake? Will the time be as memorable as her parents have always described it?

In their sixth year, they eventually got to know and love each other. Secretly, Emily hopes to find her happiness this way. A person with whom she can spend her days blissfully, who waits for her in the evening. But in any case, this is still a long way off. After all, she is only eleven years old.

However, the most troubling question Emily has to ask herself is Will she make good friends, will Rosalie and she continues to get along so well? Emily has never been able to deal well with loneliness.

"Mom, Dad?" The two called persons look at Emily over the breakfast table questioningly.

"Do you know who will be in my year? Do I already know someone?

"I've been told that the son of Fleamont and Euphemia Potter is starting this year too," her father replies. "What was his name again, Mirella?

"James. His name is James," says the mentioned one, "but Maylee Fawley is just as old as you, too."

"Maylee?" Emily furrows her brows.  
"She is my cousin's daughter. You have seen each other the last time with five. Her brother Elric is in Kingsley's class."

Kingsley looks up from today's issue of the Daily Prophet when his name is mentioned, but then quickly concentrates on the latest article again once he realizes he hasn't been addressed.

"_Underground organization on the rise - ministry worries, an exclusive interview with the newly appointed head of the Auror headquarters Rufus Scrimgeour_," Emily reads over his shoulder beside him. Slightly confused, she wrinkles her forehead.

"The son of Orion and Walburga Black is eleven years old, as well," her father redirects the subject to Emily's actual question and she turns to him, forgetting the previous train of thought again.

"If he's like his parents, then he's not a pleasant companion. He's got the urge for 'pure' blood already in his cradle," says her mother and pulls her pretty narrow eyebrows together.

"Aunt Lilith told me that it is important to keep the blood pure," Leandra turns into the conversation, absently smearing her bread.

"Leandra," their father says in a serious tone, and Leandra raises her head in surprise.

"Nothing is less important than the purity of blood, do you understand?" Mirella next to him nods in unison.

"You're not automatically a more talented magician just because your family is of magical people, that's utterly untrue," her mother adds. Leandra nods slightly overwhelmed.

"When did Aunt Lilith tell you that?"

"On my last birthday," Leandra answers meekly. "The way she said it... It made sense... Is it so wrong to think that way?"

"Yes." Kingsley now also intervenes in the conversation. "People who think they are better than others are quickly capable of dangerous things. Things that harm those they classify as less important."

"I don't want to hurt anyone." Leandra looks at her parents across the table with huge, watery eyes.

"I know honey." Mirella walks around to her youngest daughter and kneels in front of her. She grabs the small hands of the eight-year-old and looks her gently in the eyes.

"And if you stay the way you are now, it will never happen, little sunshine. Just stay true to yourself, will you? And you too." During her last sentence, she also addresses Kingsley and Emily, who was remarkably quiet during the whole situation.

Emily was not aware that it was such a sensitive subject. Perhaps she should have read the history books and not only the Charms and Transfiguration books. That she should make up for, she thinks and immediately has to imagine the big library in Hogwarts. A small smile creeps onto her face, she has heard amazing things about that room:

From her father, who is a bookworm just like her, who said that the Hogwarts library had books on all sorts of things. Kingsley also mentioned the Restricted Section, books that only certain people are supposed to read.

Secretly, Emily hopes that she will get access to it at some point. But for now, she's delighted that she will find enough reading material in Hogwarts, books that neither the Fawley nor the Shaklebolt Library has.

* * *

After breakfast, both Emily and Mirella head up to Emily's room. She is in the process of going through everything again and checking that she hasn't forgotten anything.

"Cauldron, books, scales, uniform, travel coat, hat, ingredients, phials, wand,... Is there anything missing?" Cosmo screams outraged behind her once. " Well, I won't forget you!" She laughs and offers him another biscuit.

"You should start paying attention. Cosmo doesn't manage the long distances that well anyway if you feed him a lot we will probably never hear from you." Mirella grins at her daughter and gets up from the bed.

"We've been through the stuff in your suitcase five times now, you've got everything. And if not,' she says and once goes through her daughter's hair, 'then we'll send it to you. Probably not with Cosmo -" Mirella smiles mischievously as she sees her daughter's indignant gaze.

"I'll write you every day," Emily says and embraces her mother, now for the third time.

"No, you will enjoy your time there and will not be distracted, because you have the feeling that you should write to us. We are always happy to hear from you, but the time at Hogwarts is so special that you should enjoy every minute. The seven years go by far too quickly,' Mirella says, squeezing her daughter more firmly.

"We'll see each other again at Christmas and then you'll be able to tell me everything!"

* * *

"Emily? Kingsley? Do you have everything? Can we go?" The family of five is at the doors of their house and their father Cassian turns to his two children.

Involuntarily he has to think about how big they have grown, but he quickly gets this cliché out of his head. He is not that old yet. He can think like that when Leandra goes to Hogwarts for the first time.

"Please don't make her repeat everything, again!" Mirella answers and sighs slightly as Emily begins to list everything again.

" Cauldron, books, scales, uniform, travel coat,..." Emily counts the items on her fingers and Leandra next to her involuntarily rolls her big dark brown eyes.

"Ok, yes! We know you have everything. Perfect! So are we gonna get going?" She interrupts her sister impatiently, causing Emily to give her an annoyed look. Leandra shrugs her shoulders.

"We only have 10 minutes left," Kingsley reminds the already very stressed parents.

"Minky? Will you bring the two suitcases to the platform? We'll follow,' her mother says and calls the little elf.

"Of course, Mistress." Minky bends. "Minky is waiting at the track."

And already the little creature and the two suitcases disappear with a loud plop. Emily believes she has never been so happy to live in a magical household as when she packed her suitcase. Undetectable Expansion spells are very practical, she thinks.

"Everyone on my arm, it's getting late," her father says, and they are all grabbing each other's elbows. Immediately Emily feels the feeling of being pressed into a tight tube and suddenly she is standing on platform nine three-quarters of Kings Cross. Because her family apparates so often, she no longer has to vomit or lose her balance.

* * *

Emily was always there for the last four years when her brother went to school, and even though she thought it would be something very special this year, nothing has changed on the platform.

The impressive crimson locomotive that will take Emily and Kingsley to Hogwarts today is the centre of it all. Even though a large part of the people are running across the platform, shedding tears (mostly the parents) or grinning broadly (then the children), the attention of most is focused on the train.

Children try to get their huge suitcases on the train and usually get help from older students. On one breast or the other shimmers, a prefect badge and many students proudly wear their house colours. They either already wear their official Hogwarts robes or just a scarf or a beanie, even if it is a rather warm September morning.

A few heads are leaning out of the different windows in the direction of the platform, in the direction of their parents. Almost without exceptions, these are children who look as if they were in Emily's year.

A boy with dark brown hair even receives from, Emily suspects it's his grandmother, a poison green toad passed through the window. Emily's nose is twitching. She still doesn't like toads at all.

"Why didn't we go through the wall?" Complains Leandra, who holds her stomach and briefly seeks support at the stone wall. "It's so much cooler to go through the wall than to get your stomach turned over!"

Mirella briefly turns to her daughter.

"We can go through the wall on the way back, but we can't avoid apparating." She takes a look around the chaotic platform. "Where'd Minky go with the suitcases?"

"Here Mistress. Minky is here," the little house-elf behind Emily's mother says.

"Five minutes to go!" The decoy leader screams, astonishingly clearly audible over the track and a slight panic breaks out on the platform and also in Emily's family.

"Emily, come here!" Her father says and pulls her into a hasty hug. "Until Christmas, have fun and maybe you'll get a little package from me soon." He winked at her once. What kind of package? She just got her broom a few weeks ago, didn't she? With which she has practised diligently and can proudly claim that she might even make it into the Quidditch team in the next few years.

Emily squeezes her father once more and is pulled into her mother's arms right after the hug.

"I will miss you," she mumbles into Emily's hair. "But don't forget what I told you! Enjoy it!"

Emily nods to her, her mother meanwhile pulls Kingsley into a short hug.

"Bye, Emily. Your room will be mine now." Leandra grins at her mischievously and plays innocently with a slightly curled strand of her light brown hair.

"Oh no!" Emily says played outraged, "You're too lazy to move your stuff anyway."

"That's right." Leandra shrugs her shoulders. "Then I'll probably stay with mine... Don't forget to write to me what Hogwarts is like and bring me something."

"What should I bring you along?" Emily asks confusedly. She's not allowed to go to Hogsmeade anyway, so perhaps Leandra should have asked Kingsley (again).

"Hm, no idea. Maybe a ghost or something cool."

Emily laughs.

"Let's see what we can do. I'll miss you" She pulls Leandra into a hug and after one last wink to her parents, she heads towards the train.

"I won't miss you!" She can still hear Leandra calling after her just before the doors close.

Emily shakes her head with a smile.

* * *

Shortly after Emily and Kingsley get on the train, the locomotive starts moving and with a jerk both of them briefly lose their balance. Emily just manages not to fall on a stuck-up looking sixth-grader, on whose chest the Prefect badge shines freshly polished. In the corner of her eye, she catches the blue colours of his cape.

"Will you find your way around?" Kingsley, who is already making efforts to get further into the train, asks. A little bit behind them his name is called by a brown-haired, pretty girl in a Gryffindor cape. But before Emily can even answer, she is already interrupted.

"Yes, she will. I've already found a compartment for us!"

Kingsley looks at Emily and the blonde-haired girl in front of her, slightly confused.

"This is Rosalie. Rosalie this is my brother Kingsley," Emily tries to clear up the situation.

"I'll see you soon, I've got to go to the Prefect compartment anyway." Meanwhile, Kingsley proudly shows the Gryffindor badge sent to him during the summer holidays and walks towards the brown-haired girl.

"Oh, how important..." Rosalie laughs as Kingsley greets the girl with a hug. Emily just shrugs her shoulders. He deserves it, she thinks.

"Where's that compartment?" She asks her after the train has driven around a curve and the two stumbled against each other.

"The third one on the left."

Rosalie goes ahead and grabs Cosmo's cage from Emily's hand. He only cries out slightly outraged by the sudden movement but quiets down as soon as he sees that Emily is not complaining but running after Rosalie.

"I was so excited the whole time that we were already here at half-past ten. Then I reserved the first compartment for us." Rosalie stops in front of the compartment. "But we've been joined"

With these words, she opens the glass door and takes a step inside so that the interior is no longer covered by her body.

Inside, right next to the dark door, two people sit. A girl with long fiery red hair and a friendly broad smile and opposite her a boy with chin-length black, slightly greasy hair, who surprisingly already has a crease between his eyebrows. Probably because, just like now, he pulls them together all the time.

"Lily Evans," the girl introduces herself, stands up and reaches out her hand to Emily. "Sorry to join you, there was no free compartment left."

"Emily Shaklebolt," Emily says, "No problem, are you first-graders?"

"Yes, me and Severus Snape," she points to the boy with the black hair, "are new too."

"Then I know three from my year! Nice to meet you!" Emily now stretches her hand out to Snape to greet her, but he only looks at her suspiciously.

Emily feels how the blood shoots into her cheeks and she turns slightly red, hesitantly taking her hand back again.

"Sev!" Lily calls out slightly disappointed. Severus stretches out his hand and turns his face into a somewhat deliberate, friendly smile.

" You knew each other before?" Asks Rosalie to distract the subject.

"Yes, we are neighbours and best friends," Lily says, actually with a slightly proud undertone.

Emily is amazed. Even though she only knows them for a few minutes now, it's a mystery to her how a nice person like Lily can be friends with someone like Snape. And then best friends. He wasn't even able to give her his hand to greet her. But maybe he is a great person behind the facade. It's not in her right to judge him anyway, Emily thinks.

"Excuse me?" The compartment door is pushed open and two boys look in. One with short black hair that has gotten very messed up, the other one theoretically has a similar hairstyle to Snape's, but his hair is much better cared-for.

"Are there two places left here?" The one with the short hair asks.

Emily nods and in the background, she only hears Rosalie groaning slightly. That`s it with a compartment only for the two, but as it looks, the two boys are also in her year.

"Perfect! I am James Potter," the boy with the short hair introduces himself and grins at the group. His eyes stay a little longer on Lily.

"Sirius Black," the other one says, and Emily must involuntarily remember her mother's statement about the Blacks. Hopefully, Mirella wasn't correct.

Well, that'll be a fun ride, she thinks and sits down on her window seat at the same time, after they've all introduced each other again and Emily has unpacked her Charms book. Rosalie sits directly opposite her.

Next to her the bench sinks and in the corner of her eye, she realizes that Sirius has sat down next to her and Lily. James across from him.

The two immediately start an animated conversation about collecting chocolate frogs, apparently, James recently got the card of Newt Scamander, it was the one he had been missing for some time now. Sirius seems quite jealous, as this card is the one he misses. Emily's gaze falls on Rosalie across from her who is discretely pretending to puke and twists her eyes.

Emily laughs softly into her hand. The conversation between Lily and Severus is getting her attention. For some time now she has been preoccupied with the question which house she will come to and hearing the opinions of others, who feel the same way as her, calms her down a bit. She knows which house she wants to go to, but which house will she join?

"I think Gryffindor is the most interesting. They value courage, isn't that exciting? What would one do with being cunning, faithful and knowledgeable if no one would dare to do something?" Lily says and her bright eyes light up.

Emily has to disagree with her involuntarily. You can't make logical decisions without knowledge. So what good would it do her that she dares to change something if she doesn't know what to change?

"Were your parents in Gryffindor too?" Rosalie asks her curiously and Lily stiffens up noticeably.

Severus has already told her that some in the magical world doesn't think much of those of Muggle origin like her.

"No..." she answers quietly. "My parents are no wizards..." Rosalie remains silent after Lily's answer and frowns her forehead. Emily senses how awkward the subject is for Lily.

"How interesting!" She proclaims to the surprise of the others. "Have you ever ridden one of these things on two wheels? What's it called again?" Emily looks around questioningly to take the tension out of the air.

"Do you mean," Sirius asks, "motorcycles?"

"Yes, exactly those! It looks so incredibly exciting to ride them!"

"You have to be at least 16 to ride motorcycles." Lily laughs quietly and a big grin is on her face. Emily is happy to raise her mood.

"I would want to be in Slytherin." Snape directs the topic back to Lily and his actual topic of conversation. It doesn't seem as if he appreciates Lily talking to the others so casually.

Judging by the suspicious look he gives them in the corner of his eye, he would probably rather be alone in a compartment with her. But not everyone can always have what they want.

"Who wants to be in Slytherin? I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?" James says, who now also turns from the interesting conversation about chocolate frogs to theirs. Emily and Rosalie exchange an uncertain look.

"My whole family have been in Slytherin," Sirius says.

"Blimey," says James, "and I thought you seemed all right!"

Sirius grins.

"Maybe I'll break the tradition. Where are you heading if you've got the choice?"

Probably she doesn't have to worry about her mother's statement about Sirius, as he doesn't want to follow in the footsteps of his family. Emily is relieved.

James lifts an invisible sword.

"Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart! Like my dad."

Snape makes a small, disparaging noise. James turnes on him.

"Got a problem with that?"

"No," says Snape, though his slight sneer said otherwise. "If you'd rather be brawny than brainy -"

"Where're you hoping to go, seeing as you're neither?" Sirius Interjects.

James roars with laughter. Rosalie and Emily both look at each other confused. Both think, however, that this went downhill pretty fast.

Lily sits up, rather flushed, and looks from James to Sirius in dislike.

"Come on, Severus, let's find another compartment."

Lily gets up hastily, takes her suitcase and pulls Snape, who looks at James and Sirius with a malicious look, out of the compartment by his hand. Emily can already tell from the glances of James and Sirius that Snape's school days are not going to be easy. The two black-haired boys don't seem like people who'll tolerate something like this and Severus delivers the perfect victim for both of them. Emily can only pity the lanky boy with slightly greasy hair.

" You start your school year friendly..." Emily says sarcastically after Lily and Snape have left the compartment and Rosalie snickers slightly.

"He's a Slytherin!" Answers Sirius indignantly and Emily sees Rosalie stiffening in the corner of her eye. Her whole family was as much as Emily knows about the Selwyn's either in Slytherin or Ravenclaw. Part of Emily's family as well. For example, her aunt Lilith was a proud Slytherin who, as Emily learned early this morning, apparently insists on the purity of blood. But also her grandfather Hector Fawley was in Slytherin and for him, blood purity is just as important as the chocolate frog conversation between James and Sirius earlier.

"Not every Slytherin is directly evil! Not everyone is like your family..."

Rosalie draws in the air lightly and James also looks curiously in their direction. It may not always be the best idea to insult a highly respected wizard family. Sirius, however, laughs only loudly.

"What a terrible world that would be!"

"I bet Snape' s a nice person."

"You bet?" Sirius' grin becomes wider. "Well, then we bet. I say that sooner or later the snake will become a typical Slytherin. A fascination for the dark arts, obvious hatred of Muggle-born people and so on. At some point, he'll show himself to be a Slytherin."

He holds out his hand to her.

"Ok, I say that he becomes a normal student. Not a 'typical' Slytherin like you described him!" Now there's no going back for Emily anyway. She shakes his hand.

"What are you betting on in the first place?" Rosalie finally asks. Sirius and Emily look at each other questioningly at the same time.

"Quite simply," James now says with a mischievous facial expression, "If Sirius wins, Emily does what he wants and the other way around the same way."

"Deal, Black?" Emily asks him and holds out her hand to him again. She hopes not to regret this bet at some point and that her understanding of people will not let her down.

"Deal, Shaklebolt!"

* * *

"Where are you going?" James eventually asks directed to Rosalie and Emily after a few minutes of silence.

"Rather brainy than brawny..." replies Emily.

"At least you can sell it," James laughs and points to the Charms book in her lap, "Have you learned the whole summer?"

"Just a little reading..." Emily says meekly.

"A little?" Sirius now interferes too. "Or all the books?"

Emily looks embarrassed at her feet.  
"I had a lot of time..."

Sirius laughs.

"We have to watch out for the house trophy, James! The one here." He's pointing at Emily. "I'm sure the teachers will give her a lot of points."

"Preparation is always good," Rosalie says and grins at the others, "Then you can spend the time in Hogwarts much better."

"Do you know what else is good?" James asks around, "Fun! And not with books..."

Sirius and James both laugh.

"For example with Quidditch! After all, what do you want to achieve in school?" Adds Sirius and looks at them all expectantly.

"Join the Quidditch team?" Rosalie says questioningly, pulling one of her fine blond eyebrows up.

"Glad that we're on the same page!"

" Favourite team?" James doesn't ask anyone special and already all four are in a lively conversation about the different Quidditch teams. Meanwhile, Rosalie's favourite team are the Tutshill Tornados, just because Roderick Plumpton caught the snitch after three and a half seconds in a game against the Caerphilly Catapults, making it the fastest catch in the history of Quidditch. However, the only reason she likes the team so much is that so many wizards bought free tickets to one of the season's most popular games and then had to leave after three and a half seconds. Roderick Plumpton has become somehow her hero since she knows about it.

James, who is a fan of Caerphilly Catapults and therefore obviously doesn't like the Tornados, touched his chest playing injured after Rosalie's story.

"I want to be a catapult seeker sometime!" James proudly says, "One day I'll get the medal too!"

It was at this moment that Emily realized that Gryffindor would be the right house for James. The Catapults award a medal every year in memory of their seeker who was swallowed by a Chimaera 5 years ago, for a particularly daring game manoeuvre.

The theme quickly falls on this year's World Cup, which has turned out in favour of Germany. The team of four can at least agree on one thing: It was a surprising victory. Germany's Quidditch team is by far not the best and is usually out in the first rounds, but apparently, Merlin was with them this year. James proudly tells them that he was at the game and that he has never seen such a good keeper as Florence Chevalier with the "beautiful golden curls". She protected the rings with spectacular movements. Florence played for Germany against her homeland France. Seemingly because she spent her whole life in Germany.

"Have you fallen victim to a love potion?" Sirius cannot take it upon himself to ask, "Or what has gotten into you?"

"I once heard." Emily grins mischievously in Sirius' direction. "That Florence is supposed to have Veela ancestors too..."

"Don't worry, James." Rosalie pats him on the shoulder with a false, encouraging facial expression. "You're not the first one to suffer. Many with little will power are pulled by them into their spell!"

The whole compartment laughs and James pulls out his lower lip and looks at them all with puppy eyes.

"Don't worry," Sirius says, "We still like you!"

Rosalie and Emily nod in agreement and attempt to stifle their laughter and watch seriously.

* * *

At lunchtime, a little round witch with a candy wagon passes by. James and Sirius purchase, so it occurs to Emily at least, the entire car empty. Or probably all chocolate frogs. And again an extremely interesting conversation follows between the two about chocolate frogs so that Rosalie and Emily are happy when they get bored as well.

Sirius sulks the whole trip because James keeps pulling his Newt Scamander card out of his pocket and waves it in front of him because Sirius didn't find the card of his desire in any of the hundreds of chocolate frogs. Instead, James gave Rosalie the card of Roderick Plumpton as a present. After all, he's not supporting the Tornados anyway.

Time flies by so fast that suddenly the brown-haired Gryffindor's prefect comes by and tells them that they will soon arrive in Hogsmeade and that it's time to put on their robes.

A voice echoed through the train: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately."

Emily's stomach lurched with nerves and the others also looked equally excited but terrified at the same time. James and Sirius grabbed what little sweets were left and they all went out in the small, already full, corridor.

The train slowed down and finally went to a halt. The moment Emily always wanted to happen is here. People pushed their way out of the train onto a tiny, dark platform. It was already pretty late after a 9-hour long tour. Emily was slightly disappointed as she thought she will see the big old towers of Hogwarts for the first time when she steps onto the platform but she probably has to be patient for a little longer. She waited eleven years for this moment, what are another few minutes?

* * *

A lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students and a big man, so big that he is probably descendant of a giant says "Firs' years! Firs' years over here! All right there?"

A big hairy face beamed over the small children.

"C' mon, follow me - any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me! I'm Hagrid by the way"

Slipping and stumbling, they followed Hagrid down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path. It was so dark on either side of them that Emily had to grip on what she thought was Rosalie but later came out as Sirius to not be frightened. The dark was never something she could deal with well. At least not alone. The path went through what must be thick trees. A distant cry of a bird and a flattering can be heard and Emily clutches Sirius' arm tighter.

„Sorry," she mumbles as it got a little bit brighter and she is finally able to see properly. She lets go of Sirius' arm.

„No problem, scaredy cat." He grins.

Emily just sticks her tongue out at him. They don't talk much more. Everyone is far too excited and tense.

Then Hagrid says something over his shoulder.

"Ye' all get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec, jus' round this bend here."

There was a loud „Oooooh!"

And yes, Hogwarts truly was magnificent. Even better than Emily imagined and even more impressive than all the descriptions have made it out to be.

The narrow path had opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky was a vast castle with many turrets and towers.

Sirius next to her leans in and whispers in her ear, „Welcome to Hogwarts"

* * *

**Next update: Tuesday. June 25.**


End file.
